Children’s Literacy News and Reading News Roundup: August in Review
Carol Rasco hosts our month-in-review roundups, and the full August children’s literacy and reading news roundup is waiting for you at Quietly.
As you may have noticed Jen Robinson, Carol Rasco, and I always happy to talk about all things literacy and books, and love collaborating on this community project. The Children’s Literacy and Reading News Roundup brought to you by Jen Robinson’s Book Page, The Family Bookshelf, and Quietly is published twice each month, with Jen Robinson and I sharing the mid-month collection and Carol wrapping up each month at Quietly.
Like Jen, I was so taken with the Reading Nook posted by the Thrifty Decor Chick that I actually searched our house for a closet I could convert! I didn’t find a closet, but I DID move a dresser from our room to add a comfy chair and lamp … just in time for fall / winter reading! I am looking forward to seeing Jen’s Reading Nook for Baby Bookworm.
In the looking ahead portion of the roundup, Carol reminded us that September is Library Card Sign-Up Month. Librarians are pretty savvy about creating special reading nooks, too! With all the talk of Voter Registration drives, I’m sure there are libraries that are keen on you visiting them, too …
Like the Public School Libraries in Baltimore. In a recent SLJ Extra Helping Article, Lauren Barack talked told us how a $5 million grant investment produced “12 new school libraries equipped with Nooks, computers, and even a reading spot for mom and dad.” Wow! Space for mom in dad in the school library!
If you haven’t listened to Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke’s July speech to the Children’s Defense Fund yet, I highly recommend it … even if it means you don’t read another word of this post.
When individuals are denied opportunities to reach their maximum potential, it harms not only those individuals, of course, but also the larger economy which depends vitally on having a skilled, productive workforce. As a result, we all have a stake in the essential work you are doing for our children.
While Ben Bernanke was focusing his “you” on the employees of the Children’s Defense Fund, it applies equally to educators, librarians, parents … all of us who guide, mentor, and work with children.
Another of Carol’s items that caught my eye was the Christian Science Monitor article about Year ‘Round Schools. It is a topic near and dear to my heart, and I did not realize just how mixed the results have been. Ben Harpaz does a nice job presenting the key elements of the debate. [Image Credit: MorgueFile]
In an August, back-to-school edition of The Big Fresh (Choice Literacy newsletter), Brenda Power highlighted several articles focused on working in a multicultural classroom. First, ESL teacher Stella Villalba offers a personal perspective in her piece Getting to Know English Language Learners at the Start of the School Year. Brenda also gives us several great resources.
- Candis Grover has a Pinterest Board for Back to School Spanish Read Alouds
- Colorin Colorado has a PDF Engaging ELL Families: Tips for School Leaders, that is also valuable for families.
We’ll be back mid-month with a roundup. Jen Robinson has a new weekly column Links I’ve Shared on Twitter on Jen Robinson’s Book Page And we’ll all keep highlighting interesting items as we find it. Just follow us @CHRasco, @ReadingTub, and @JensBookPage.
Thanks for your interest in our ongoing efforts to share literacy and reading news and for so generously sharing it on social media.